Mutesa I, in full Mutesa Walugembe Mukaabya (born c. 1838—died October 1884, Nabulagala, Buganda [now in Uganda]), autocratic but progressive kabaka (ruler) of the African kingdom of Buganda at a crucial time in its history, when extensive contacts with Arabs and Europeans were just beginning.

Mutesa has been described as both a ruthless despot and a highly skilled politician. Although his position during his first six years in office was extremely precarious and resulted in much bloodshed, he was soon able to consolidate his kingdom into a bureaucratic autocracy in which traditional priests and clan leaders had little power but in which, at least to some extent, talent was recognized. He also reformed the military system and expanded his fleet of war canoes on Lake Victoria.

Under him Buganda’s chief wealth came from raids into neighbouring states, although he made no attempt to extend his direct political control. Slaves and ivory seized on these raids or paid to Buganda as tribute were traded to Arabs for guns and cotton cloth, but Mutesa kept both this trade and the Arabs themselves under strict control. He was apparently influenced enough by Islam to observe Ramadan (the month of fasting observed by Muslims) from 1867 to 1877, but, wishing to use European influence as a counterweight to an Egyptian threat from the north, he also welcomed Christian missionaries in 1877.

Learn More in these related articles:

powerful kingdom of East Africa during the 19th century, located along the northern shore of Lake Victoria in present-day south-central Uganda. Buganda’s insistence on maintaining a separate political identity contributed to Uganda’s destabilization after that country reached...

one whose native language is Arabic. (See also Arabic language.) Before the spread of Islam and, with it, the Arabic language, Arab referred to any of the largely nomadic Semitic inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula. In modern usage, it embraces any of the Arabic-speaking peoples living in the vast...

largest lake in Africa and chief reservoir of the Nile, lying mainly in Tanzania and Uganda but bordering on Kenya. Its area is 26,828 square miles (69,484 square km). Among the freshwater lakes of the world, it is exceeded in size only by Lake Superior in North America. It is an irregular...